Method of wheel hub forging



June 13, 1933. LEFERE 1,913,492

METHOD OF WHEEL HUB FORGING I Filed Aug. 5, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet l A TTORNEYS.

June 13, 1933. A. LEFERE METHOD OF WHEEL HUB FORGING Filed Aug. 3, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IIIII llllll- I N VEN TOR.

6'1 00,? LEFZWE A TTORNEX 'S Patented June 13, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFF ICE ALIDOR OI JACKSON, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR TO LEFERE FORGE & MACHINE COMPANY, 01' JACKSON, MICHIGAN, A CORPORATION OF MICHIGAN METHOD OF WHEEL HUB FORGING Application filed August 8, 1931. Serial No. 554,658.

This invention relates to a new automobile wheel hub together with a novel method of forming the same.

Most wheel hubs are formed by a metal stamping operation out of sheet metal, or are made in the form of mallea 'le steel castings,

or else are formed from meta forgings which automobile wheel hubs and shaping them to substantially the final form in a forging operation.

I accomplish this object by so designing the final forging blank and the final forging product as to provide a suitable relief for the A extruded metal in punching the slug out and expanding the shell to give it the final shape. This relief is not only useful in accommodating the flow of the metal and preventing the freezing or binding of the punch and dies but also permits of the handling of slightly .yarying blanks due to varying heats.

Referring to the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a vertical section through the dies before they are brought together.

Fig. 2 is a similar view when they first come into contact.

Fig. 3 is a similar view of the diesat or near the finish of their downward movement.

Fig. 4 shows the dies separated and the slug ejected.

Numeral 1 designates the base of the forging machine having a bed 3 which carries a trimming die 2 which is arranged to shear ofi' or trim the flash 4 on the blank when the upper and lower dies are driven down. The sleeve 5 is upwardly pressed by a heavyhelical spring 6. At. the top of the sleeve rests a lower forming die 7 having an upper face arranged to givethe final shape to the inside face of the hub flange. The upper die 8 has its lower face arranged to finally shape the outside face of the hub flange while thecenter of the die is arranged to form the outside surface of the body of the hub. v This occurs when the metal is arranged to flow by mean of the punch 9 which alsoforms a mandrel with which the upper die cooperates. 7

Referring now to Fig. 1: This shows the hub blank after it is taken from the forging hammer and placed in the final forging dies. The blank has been formed in the customary way of forming forgings from hot billets or sections of metal. The blank has been pounded into a general approximation of the contour the hub is finally to have. A pad 11 has been left between the upper and lower die at the center. It will also be noticed that a peripheral relief 12 encircles the outer end of the body of the hub. This relief is considerably reduced in Figs. 3 and 4 at the point 12a by the flow of the metal to give the final forging dimensions at the outer end of the hub and to make the inside and outside surfaces substantially cylindrical. In achieving this the blank at the outer end is tapered and made considerably smaller in diameter than the final product. The stationary punch 9 is carried on the upper end of the stationary post 14. The upper die 8 which may be operated by any suitable ram and press mechanism (not shown) comes down onto the work and the lower die leaving the ejector rod 15 suspended above. This is shown in Fig. 2. This shears off the flash as already referred to. The work is then driven over the end of the stationary punch 9 and this acts also in connection with the upper die to punch out the slug 16 and cause the material to flow out against the center opening of the upper die and fill up part of the relief as shown in Fig. 3 at the same time the ejector rod 15 comes down. The slug 16 cools less rapidly than the end of the hub and consequently will not drop back into the end of the hub as the lower vdie rises with the spring pressure. If the slug sticks in the upper die then it is promptly (ijected by the ejector rod 15 as shown in The large relief space on the outside of the body of the hub affords a space into which the metal can flow as the pad is punched out. By reason of a liberal excess of relief no difliculty is experienced in handling blanks of a slightly varying size due to the body into one of the dies and the relief s varying heats or forging operations. By reto properly shape the exterior and th:

lieving this flow of the metal any difliculty terior circumference, while leaving ares '2 in the binding of the dies or the punch is space resulting from the relief space 5 avoided. The excess relief results in what punch being drawn back out of the worf.

I call a residual groove 12a. Furthermore, In testimony whereof I afiix my slgna the relief forms a space into which the punch ALIDOR LEFEE or mandrel can cause the metal to flow to form a substantially accurate outside and inside diameter at the end of the hub.

This method of forging and finishing the hub eliminates some of the machine operations such as boring, etc. which have been thought necessary in manufacturing of 15 forged Wheel hubs. fhese machine operations increase both the labor and material costs.

The operations which have just been described may or may not be carried out in the same heat with which the blank is formed from the billet or bar. What I claim is: 1. The method of manufacturing wheel hubs which comprises the forging of a blank having a hub flange and a hollow hub body except for a pad to keep the dies separated the body being provided with a relief on its periphery of excess capacity. subjecting said blank while in heated condition to a final forging by punch and die operation in which the pad is punched out and the body at one. end is expanded and the metal of the body caused to flow by reason of the excess relief and to establish substantially the dimensions and shape desired for the final product and leave a peripheral groove resulting from the said relief.

2. The method of manufacturing wheel hubs which comprises the forging from a hot billet of a blank with a suitable flange and body portion in which the body portion is on the exterior given a substantial relief with the body hollow except for a pad, then subjecting the blank while in the heated condition to a final forging by punch and die 31% operation in which the pad is punched out the end of the body expanded and by reason of the relief the metal is caused to flow c0- incident with the punching to permit the a i punching and shaping the hub body into substantially the final dimensions and contour desired, while leaving a residual space resulting from the relief space, the punch being drawn back out of the work. 3. The method of manufacturing wheel 120 hubs which comprises the forging of a blank with flange and hollow body except for a transverse pad, said body having an external relief space of excess capacity at its outer end, andthen the placing of the forging 125 blank between two dies which encompass the outside of the body and the hub flange and then moving the dies relatively to a punch which forces out a slug of metal in eliminat- 3i mg the pad and expands the outer end-of the l 

